title: Field trial of active remote sensing using a high-power short-wave infrared supercontinuum laser.
abstract: Field trial results of a 5 W all-fiber broadband supercontinuum (SC) laser covering the short-wave infrared (SWIR) wavelength bands from ~1.55 to 2.35 μm are presented. The SC laser is kept on a 12 story tower at the Wright Patterson Air Force Base and propagated through the atmosphere to a target 1.6 km away. Beam quality of the SC laser after propagating through 1.6 km is studied using a SWIR camera and show a near diffraction limited beam with an M(2) value of <1.3. The SC laser is used as the illumination source to perform spectral reflectance measurements of various samples at 1.6 km, and the results are seen to be in good agreement with in-lab measurements using a conventional lamp source. Spectral stability measurements are performed after atmospheric propagation through 1.6 km and show a relative variability of ~4%-8% across the spectrum depending on the atmospheric turbulence effects. Spectral stability measurements are also performed in-lab and show a relative variability of <0.6% across the spectrum.
authors.forename: Vinay V
authors.initials: VV
authors.lastname: Alexander
authors.forename: Zhennan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Mohammed N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Islam
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ke
authors.forename: Galina
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kalinchenko
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Freeman
authors.forename: Agustin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ifarraguerri
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Meola
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Absi
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Leonard
authors.forename: Jerome A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Zadnik
authors.forename: Anthony S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Szalkowski
authors.forename: Gregory J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Boer